Fearful for the survival of Democracy

If you read the actual transcripts of Trump and Putin’s press conference following the Helsinki Summit, the first thing that may occur to you is that President Trump cannot express a coherent thought. The second, and by far the more troubling realization, is that the President of the United States just gave away the farm, and I’m not talking about his trade wars.

Donald Trump, who fancies himself a strong-man leader, abased himself before the Russian tyrant and in doing so, trashed America’s intelligence, law enforcement and justice agencies. This coming on the heels of Trump’s bullying, disruptive behavior with our allies in NATO and the UK, gave Putin a sweeping geopolitical victory gained with nary a shot being fired — except in the Crimea, eastern Ukraine, and Syria.

I’m a veteran of 20 years in the military and another 20-plus working in national security and intelligence. I’m 80 years old. I’ve lived through the administrations of 14 presidents. Never in all my years have I seen such a disgraceful capitulation to a foreign adversary by a sitting U.S. president. Never have I felt so fearful for the survival of democracy and the Republic itself.

Richard V. Badalamente

Kennewick, Wash.